Mood

A recent survey set out to get into women's pants and found out that some of the time women won't be wearing anything under them. In addition to discovering that one in 10 women admits to leaving the house sans undies, the survey came up with these intimate findings:

• On average, a woman owns 21 pairs of underwear.
• 27 percent of women say an ill-fitting or unattractive pair of underwear puts them in a bad mood.
• 27 percent of women simply toss their underwear in the drawer instead of folding them.

You can fold underwear? Anyway, while I think a wedgie will ruin any girl's day, I'm not so sure ugly lingerie puts me in a bad mood. What about you?

And if you'd like to add to your underwear collection, don't forget to enter our amazing holiday giveaway: we're giving one lucky reader $1,000 to Victoria's Secret!

Sex can wake you up, it can help you sleep, it can even clear your sinuses, and now it can keep your mind from wandering, which is good news for daydreamers.

An iPhone app designed by psychologists to track moods asked users what they were feeling, thinking, and doing about three times a day. It found people daydream about 50 percent of the time and are usually unhappy while doing so. Could they just be daydreaming because they're unhappy? Not likely. The study found low moods came after daydreaming but not before.

Sex, though, proved to be the one activity that caused mind wandering to drop below 30 percent. Maybe that's why we should say yes to sex every time? Unless it's boring.

When we fall back an hour Sunday we might also descend into a grumpy mood. While we gain an extra hour of sleep, the time change messes with our internal clock, leading to poor sleep, decreased energy, and depression.

Dr. John Sharp, the author of The Emotional Calendar: Understanding Seasonal Influences and Milestones to Become Happier, More Fulfilled, and in Control of Your Life, says the key to seasonal happiness is embracing this time of year. He explains: "Instead of using the fact that it's dark out in the evening to hide under your covers wishing it was April, embrace the change and find autumnal things that make you happy, like getting cozy by the fireplace and eating soup."

You have two days to prepare. How will you embrace the darker, colder season?

Twitter TMI may be paying off after all. Researchers from the Northeastern University College of Computer and Information Sciences and from Harvard Medical School have been analyzing tweets to gauge when we're feeling our best and worst. More specifically, which day of the week and at what time.

The project — called the Pulse of the Nation: U.S. Mood Throughout the Day Inferred From Twitter — has looked at more than 300 million tweets that were sent between September 2006 and August 2009, creating maps to visualize the data. The sizes of the states reflect how many tweets are coming from them, and the color reflects the mood of the tweet. Green areas on the map are the most happy, and red indicates unhappiness. And while some of the findings have been a little expected — on weekdays, people are happiest when they're not at work — others were a bit more revealing. Find out more after the jump.

I can't get enough of all of the great music sites and apps out there, and today I found another new obsession, StereoMood. To get started, choose your mood — from emotions as simple as "happy" and as creative as "driving Route 66." StereoMood will create a playlist of hundreds of songs to suit your mood. In my opinion, the playlists are spot-on; while some songs are repeated across multiple playlists, they do accurately reflect what you're feeling.

An added bonus: if you're not feeling quite as happy, sweet, or chill as you'd like, just cue up your desired playlist and let the music change your mood. You can also create a music library of your own by adding tracks from playlists, tag songs, share tunes with friends, or purchase the song from Amazon or iTunes directly from a certain playlist.

The majority of Fit readers call themselves carb queens, and Winter can make those carbohydrate cravings even more intense. But have no fear: scientists are finding even more reasons not to avoid this essential food group.

A recent study of more than 100 obese and overweight adults in Australia found that dieting put people in a better mood; a drop in pounds led to increased satisfaction. But for people on low-carb diets, the mood boost didn't last.

The study group was split, with half the subjects on a lowfat diet and the other half low-carbing it. Interestingly, folks in both groups lost the same amount of weight on average, about 30 pounds. But after a year, the low-carb dieters also lost the positive mood effects, while the low-fat dieters did not. Here's more from the study.

If you've been snippy lately, hurry up and get outside before Winter arrives! According to researchers at the University of Rochester, spending time in nature makes us nicer. A scientist behind the study explained:

"Now we’ve found nature brings out more social feelings, more value for community and close relationships. People are more caring when they’re around nature."

Seems like they're telling us that next time we feel like telling someone to "take a hike!" we should take one ourselves.

I typically experience nature with a day in the park or a weekend trip out of the city for some hiking or camping. I've always felt that getting outside was a way to be nice to myself, since I feel calmer and more relaxed after. But apparently it makes me nicer to other people too! Do you spend time in nature? Has it made you feel like a nicer person?

I'm a fan of motivational tips because even though some of them may seem corny and random, they can be helpful in a pinch.

I needed a picker-upper the other day and was reminded of this list of things to do to ensure a better life. It may sound silly, but doing two things on the list — eating almonds and taking a walk while grinning like a weirdo (OK, that's not how he put it!) really did boost my mood.

I'm all about being proactive. What do you do to lift your spirits?

If you have a big decision to make, you might want to hurry up and make it before the sunny Summer's over.

New research reveals that not only are people more moody on cloudy days, but they actually have cloudier brains too! During a study on strokes, researchers coincidentally discovered a positive correlation between cognitive impairment and gloomy weather. While the study focused on people already prone to depression, experts say the findings can likely be extended to others. So you're probably better off making big decisions on days when the sky is clear and so is your mind.

Does the weather ever impact the way you think?


Source: Flickr User xlordashx